Mary Ellen Hill ~ Storyteller & Teacher

Storytelling

ThestoriesI tellengage imaginations,evoke hope and compassion,are meaningful for all people of any age, faith and culture.

Storytelling

I tell
a wide varietyof
fairy tales, folktales and creation myths from
around the world. You can choose traditional tales, such as "Thumbelina","Snow White", "Three Billy Goats Gruff" and "Rumpelstiltskin", or
choose lesser-known tales, such as, "Why Sun and Moon Live in the Sky", "The
Silver River", "The Magic Lake at the End of the World" and "The Hunter and the Tiger". I
have over 80 stories to choose from.

"The Paper Plate Angel", is an original story, I created
because I needed a modern day story of a child who celebrates Winter Solstice, Hanukkah and Christmas. This story includes
an art project of an actual paper plate angel.

I also found that when I tell stories at birthday parties some children have favorite animals or things
that are not in any of my stories. So I created an original, interactive story,"The Magical Birthday (train, dragon, submarine, whale...)", in which the children help me
tell the story by adding other characters and places as they travel on their birthday ride.

"We enjoyed her animated style, appreciated the multicultural stories and her
her heartwarming ways."Kim Laehle, MA

"I am so glad my daughter gets to be around such a creative person who is helping her imagine and enjoy stories. As her parents, we are such linear thinkers- it is great she
gets to spend time with you!" Mom of 3 year old

"It is our son's favorite day when you come and tell stories."Dad of 2 year old

"The students were so engaged- all of them! You are a great storyteller." Teacher of 5th graders

"When can you come back? Please, please come back tomorrow." Elementary students

"Thank you for making our daughter's birthday so magical! The parents loved listening to you as well. It was so much fun acting out the stories, too. I highly recommend you." Mom & dad of a 6 year old

"We cannot wait for you to come back next year for more of your magical stories. Thank you so much for incorporating spanish words in your stories."Director of a Bilingual Preschool

"Always great to see you and have our students exposed to your amazing folk-tales and a wonderful woman." Director of a Preschool

"I feel motivated to become a great storyteller!"

My Specialty

My Specialty as a Professional Storyteller is

We Are The Stars That Sing: The Story of The Universe

This evocative and engaging storytelling performance weaves
together a scientific explanation and a mythic interpretation of the
13.7 billion year old evolution of the Universe. It is an educational and magical blending of
cosmology and indigenous creation stories that tells how all life, including you,
is made of star stuff. This approach engages the left and right brain as well as
captivates the deeply embedded memory of humans gathered together to hear their creation story.

Read on to hear more...........OR, Click Herefor the 4 versions of My Specialty, "We Are The Stars That Sing..." Click Here to learn about the Algonquian poem that inspired me to call my specialty "We
Are The Stars That Sing..."

Since 1987 I have been inspired by Brian Swimme, Thomas Berry
and Miriam MacGillis.

When I heard Brian say,
"We are the fireball becoming aware... we need to remember how to listen, ... we must awaken the
deep dream of the Universe",
this engaged my whole being so intensely, I wanted to know more!

The words of Thomas echoed in my mind,
"We need to know the sacred creation story of the emergent Universe, for if we dont
know this story we don't know ourselves."

I was so inspired and amazed when I experienced " The Cosmic Spiral Walk", created by Miriam.

These experiences ignited my desire to articulate the story in my own unique way. While I was at a storytelling swap
I realized that the ancient art of the oral tradition would be a perfect mode of expression. I have been telling creation myths and folktales
since 1990. In 1995, my love affair with and study of cosmology and storytelling evolved into my performance specialty, "We Are The Stars That Sing:
The Story of The Universe".

I have performed "We Are The
Stars That Sing..." at a variety of events
and each telling is unique, created especially for the particular theme and
audience.

At the Morrison Planetarium the story was enhanced by stunning visuals.

At the Lawrence Hall of Science I geared it towards 5-8 year olds and used a more hands-on
approach.

At St. Matthew's Church retreat I focused on the origin of the Easter Lily.

While telling at birthday parties I weave the life story of the birthday person into the cosmological story.

At the EarthSpirit Rising Conference I did an eight minute version and wore my cosmic costume
for a dramatic sparkly visual effect.

At a Sunday morning talk for Unity Church, Kim Farmer, M.Ed. and I collaborated in combining the story with spiritual teachings.